Sierra Leone will crack down on telecom companies that ignore regulations or do not live up to service obligations, according to the country's minister of information and communications, Alhaji Ibrahim Ben Kargbo.

"Though the country is operating under the confines of democracy and a liberal economy which allows companies to operate without hassles, any telecommunication company that fails to cooperate in honoring the laws of the country will be closed down," Kargbo said during a visit to the headquarters of the National Telecommunications Commission (NATCOM) last week.

Mobile operators in the country are being criticized for ineffective service, despite relatively high tariffs. Kargbo said that telecom companies could risk being shut down if they deliberately refuse to render full services to users.

"Mobile phone users are being cheated out of services they are to enjoy," Kargbo said. "We find this quite unacceptable and will get to the bottom of it."

Another issue raised by regulators, according to the information minister, is the unprecedented installation of telecom dishes in a clustered manner in various parts of the country.

"Some dishes are being planted with no compensation to land owners," Kargbo said.

Such installations also have raised concerns about healths risk to people living in close range.

One parliamentarian, David B. Conteh, noted that it is unacceptable in other countries for two or three mobile companies to mount dishes in the same vicinity.

Kargbo gave assurances that his ministry and NATCOM will meet with telcos to work as partners and cooperate in putting up dishes that can be shared by several parties.

The IDG News Service is a Network World affiliate.